Former Montgomery County Republican Party Chairman Robert Kerns, right, leaves Whitpain district court with his attorney on Friday, April 25, 2014, after his arraignment on rape charges filed by state prosecutors. (Photo by Michael Goldberg/21st Century Media)

WHITPAIN — Former Montgomery County Republican Chairman Robert Kerns was arraigned in district court Friday morning on rape and related offenses after the Pennsylvania Attorney General’s Office filed charges against him in a case that was dropped by a county prosecutor last month.

Kerns, 66, of North Wales, turned himself in at District Judge Robert Sobeck’s Whitpain court around 11 a.m. Friday, and was arraigned by District Judge JoAnn L. Teyral — a retired York County judge — after Sobeck recused himself from the proceedings.

Kerns, who stands accused of raping and sexually assaulting a female paralegal who worked at his law firm after a celebratory gathering at a Blue Bell restaurant on Oct. 25, 2013, has been charged by state prosecutors with eight criminal counts: one count of felony rape of an unconscious victim, one count of felony sexual assault, two counts of felony aggravated indecent assault, three counts of misdemeanor indecent assault and one count of misdemeanor simple assault.

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Bail was set at 10 percent of $1 million, which Kerns posted. Neither Kerns nor his attorney commented on the newly filed charges as they left the courtroom.

Kerns is due back in Whitpain district court on May 13 for a preliminary hearing that will also be presided over by Teyral.

The case will be prosecuted by Deputy Attorney General Daniel Dye of the Office of Attorney General’s Criminal Prosecutions Section.

The Montgomery County District Attorney’s Office dropped rape charges against Kerns without prejudice after Kerns’ attorney found the lab report indicating the victim had Ambien in her system at the time of the alleged rape had been misread by investigators. Kerns’ attorney, Brian J. McMonagle, hired two experts who found the report actually indicated no Ambien had been in the victim’s system.

The prosecution dropped the case via petition because the toxicology report for Ambien read as “<5” or less than five, which was read as more than zero by investigators but actually means there was no traceable amount. Ferman said that the charges were wrapped around the evidence which indicated the victim was drugged before she was raped.

“The misinterpreted evidence was intertwined with the original charges and relied upon by the Grand Jury and Magisterial District Judge,” the petition said.

District Attorney Risa Vetri Ferman previously declined to comment on the strength of the case without the toxicology report. The petition paper work states “while there was and remains ample probable cause to support Kerns’ arrest, the mistake made by investigators in the interpretation of the Quest Diagnostics lab report has led to the necessity to nolle prosequi the criminal charges against Kerns as they currently stand.”

Quest Diagnostics does not usually work on lab reports for the county; however, since the victim had blood taken at Abington Hospital, the hospital sent the blood to Quest to be examined and reported on.

Ferman declined to comment on Kern’s arrest on Friday.

In a criminal complaint filed in court Friday, Special Agent Jessica L. Eger, of the Bureau of Criminal Investigations for the Pennsylvania Office of Attorney General, said that after being assigned the case via referral from the Montgomery County District Attorney’s Office and reviewing various pieces of evidence — including DNA lab reports and cellphone records — as well as the alleged victim’s statement and police interviews with Kerns, she concluded that Kerns “did engage in sexual penetration and/or penetration of the victim’s genitals without the consent or knowledge that the penetration was occurring.”

According to the complaint, Kerns offered to drive the alleged victim to the King of Prussia Mall because she had been drinking at the gathering. The woman said that she was capable of walking on her own, but did not want to risk driving and therefore accepted Kerns’ offer.

Kerns first drove the woman to the King of Prussia Mall, where he allegedly sexually assaulted her in his vehicle without her consent or knowledge, then drove her to her residence, where Kerns allegedly engaged in sexual acts without the victim’s consent or knowledge, then left the home, investigators said.

According to the criminal complaint, the victim woke up the next day “in a panic, finding dried vomit on her clothes and finding that she was not wearing any pants or (underwear).”

The victim then went to the bathroom and found bruises and finger marks on the inside of her left thigh, scratch marks on her left thigh and scratches and marks on her right thigh; she was also suffering from vaginal soreness and pain between her shoulder blades, the complaint states.

After photographing her injuries, she “remembered her head pressed against a car window and pushing Kerns away while moaning in pain,” the complaint states.

The next day, Oct. 27, the woman received a sexual assault examination at an area hospital, which documented injuries to her genital area, thighs and breast, investigators said. After quitting her job at Kerns’ law firm on Oct. 28, the woman received a call from Kerns on Oct. 29, which she did not answer, the complaint shows, and she reported the alleged assault to police on Oct. 31.

According to the complaint, a mutual friend of Kerns and the alleged victim — who is not named in court papers — consented to the interception and recording of phone calls with Kerns that took place on Nov. 5 and Nov. 6. The complaint states that during a Nov. 5 phone conversation with the friend, Kerns said repeatedly that “absolutely nothing happened” between him and the alleged victim.

But during a Nov. 6 phone call, when the friend told Kerns that the victim “indicated she has injuries consistent with rape and that the evidence seems to be strong,” Kerns replied, “If it is, it is,” adding “you know, that’s why I got (lawyer) McMonagle” and stating near the end of the conversation that “stupid decisions lead to stupid results,” the complaint states.